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Washington Post: House Ethics Committee looking into Michele Bachmann

-By Rachel Weiner

July 26, 2013- The House Ethics Committee has confirmed an ongoing review into Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn), which has just been extended.

Bachmann’s lawyer confirmed in March that the Office of Congressional Ethics was looking into the congresswoman’s campaign finances. The OCE, a non-partisan, independent entity, can either dismiss a case or recommend a full House Ethics Committee investigation.

“[T]he mere fact of a referral or an extension, and the mandatory disclosure of such an extension and the name of the subject of the matter, does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the Committee,” the committee said in a statement.

William McGinley, Bachmann’s lawyer, referred to the panel’s statement in an e-mail, emphasizing the extension “does not speak to the merits of this matter, and any inference to the contrary is false.

“We are confident the Committee will discover, upon proper review, that the highly politicized allegations made at the OCE level were baseless and without merit,” he wrote.